PERTH (miningweekly.com) − Uranium hopeful Aura Energy has declared a maiden uranium resource of 50-million pounds at its greenfield Reguibat project, in Mauritania.

The explorer said on Thursday that around 48.9-million pounds of this resource is contained within its permit area.

The Reguibat project comprises several laterally extensive developments of calcrete uranium mineralisation in northern Mauritania, and Aura confirmed that the area was now a major emerging uranium province.

Aura said that the resource was estimated from two drilling programmes, the most recent completed in November, and the other in February. The drilling programme covered all Aura’s wholly owned permits, as well as its joint-venture permits, and totalled over 9 100 m and 2 022 holes.

The new maiden resource for the Reguibat project has increased Aura’s total mineral holdings to some 348-million pounds of uranium in the inferred category, across all of its projects in West Africa, Australia and Sweden.

The company noted that there was also further potential to increase the resource as the company holds some 11 000 km² of tenement area in northern Mauritania, with additional potential areas already identified.

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